Brussels, 28/06/2010 (Agence Europe) - Eurostat, the EU's statistics office, has published the 2010 edition of the publication Taxation trends in the European Union, measuring taxes and social security compared with GDP (corrected for seasonal variations). It observes that in 2008, the overall tax-to-GDP ratio in the EU27 was 39.3% and 39.7% in the eurozone. There are wide differences between the member states, with the tax burden being below 30% in four member states (Ireland, Latvia, Romania and Slovakia) and around 50% in Denmark and Sweden. Between 2000 and 2008, the largest falls in tax-to-GDP ratios were recorded in Slovakia (from 34.1% in 2000 to 29.1% in 2008), Sweden (from 51.8% to 47.1%) and Finland (from 47.2% to 43.1%), and the highest increases in Cyprus (from 30.0% to 39.2%) and Malta (from 28.2% to 34.5%).
The largest source of tax revenue in the EU27 is income tax (tax on work), making up over 40% of total tax receipts, followed by consumption taxes at roughly one quarter and taxes on capital at just over one fifth. Income taxes are highest in Italy, consumption taxes are highest in Denmark and taxes on capital are highest in the UK.
The report sets out tax measures taken to boost economic recovery and assesses their impact on the coffers of the member state in question. The tax burden on business has not been reduced but member states are letting companies pay tax later because of cashflow problems. The top personal income tax rate in the EU27 increased in 2010, largely due to a 10-percentage point hike in the United Kingdom. The highest top rates on 2010 personal income are found in Sweden (56.4%), Belgium (53.7%) and the Netherlands (52.0%), and the lowest in Bulgaria (10.0%), the Czech Republic and Lithuania (both 15.0%). Between 2000 and 2010, the biggest cuts in top income tax were in Bulgaria (from 32.5% to 10.0%) and Germany (from 51.6% to 29.8%). Standard VAT in the EU27 increased on average from 19.2% in 2000 to 20.2% in 2010. Over this period, VAT remained unchanged in thirteen member states, was raised in twelve (from 18.0% to 23.0% in Greece, for example) and fell in two (Slovakia and the Czech Republic). (M.B./transl.fl)